From the Doctor With Love
by Mouthful-of-knowledge
Summary: The Doctor has planned an entire day chock-full of thoughtful gestures for just Romana and him to spend together. Chocolates and roses usually seals the deal however, the Doctor isn't so traditional and when doing so, not everything goes according to plan. The Doctor's day of affection for Romana, takes many twists and turns. Find out what happens when danger and romance clash!


**(Chapter One: Breakfast For a Timelady)**

"Romana!" the Doctor bellowed from the kitchen standing impatiently as he finished setting the table. He raised his head abruptly in curiosity at what could be keeping her. "What could she possibly be doing?" He mumbled to himself as he began to stroll through the corridors towards Romana's living quarters.

He groveled quietly, "This is ridiculous, she's always up and about at this time." the Doctor approached her bedroom and flung the door open quickly, creating a draft that moved his scarf out of place. Flicking on the light switch to find Romana was still comfortably sound asleep in her bed, wrapped in her sheets and blankets.

Realizing he should lower his voice and soften his tone to try to wake the delicate young lady, the Doctor walked over to where Romana lay dreaming and chimed quietly, "Romana...It's time to get up." Romana groaned softly as her hand drooped from the bed. The Doctor took her hand in his, rubbing his thumb on her fingers. He leaned over her and whispered rather loudly, "Romana, come on we have places to go. You've gotten plenty of rest for now."

"Go away, I'm tired." she replied groggily.

"Romana, we have things planned."

"Cancel them then. I'm not in the mood."

"Not in the mood? Oh, rubbish! Don't be so grumpy. Come on!" the Doctor gleamed cheerfully.

"Doctor, I want to be left alone to sleep."

"Look lively! Now! Up! Up! Up!" he said brazenly as he shook her shoulder.

Romana reached behind her, grabbed and then threw a pillow at his head hitting him dead in the face.

"Ow! Romana!"

"Go away," she yawned, satisfied with her aim, "I wish to sleep!"

"You've already overslept! Why are you so tired?"

"Gosh you're irritating…" she muttered with her face buried in her silk pillowcase, "I have to deal with you twenty four seven! How could I not be tired?"

"Romana, I've been planning today for quite some time now. It's all for you! I didn't do it for my health! I did it for you!"

Romana suddenly twisted her head towards the Doctor, squinting to focus her vision. "What do you mean?"

"I mean I planned today for you and I can't even get you out of bed to see what I've done." He half smiled in an attempt to conceal his frustration.

Romana remained silent, staring into his eyes, she finally sat up and sighed, "Alright, give me a few minutes to get dressed."

"Come and find me when you're ready!" The Doctor gave a gentle nod as he then swaggered off into the seemingly endless corridors with some spring in his step and a churlish smile on his face.

Romana rolled out of bed and quickly scurried to put on a dress. There she stood, in front of the mirror, wearing the one of a kind dress she tailored herself. It was sure to catch the Doctor's attention. She twirled around to check for any loose threads or tears in the seams. But there were none, it was close to perfect as could be.

The dress hugged her hips and torso just enough to show off her curves. The flowing material created a hypnotic feeling in her mind when she stared at it for too long. She had fashioned two, unnoticeable, pockets on each hip of her dress. Romana thought they might come in handy when having to carry small knick knacks. White with detailed, blue, floral print. The dress fit like a glove.

Comfortable and appealing to the eye. She was more than pleased with the outcome of her design however, she thought, even though the dress was nearly perfect, it was missing something. "What does it need?" She went over to the closet, found her pair of plain white flats and wiggled them on. "Now what? A hat? Scarf? Purse? No, not a purse." she argued. Turning to her dresser on top of which sat a beautifully hand carved oak jewelry box, from 1927 Earth, that housed many trinkets and bobbles she had acquired in her time with the Doctor.

"I know just the thing!" Romana squealed with a smile. Carefully opening the box, she rummaged through what looked to be more than what should be able to fit in such a small container, and finally pulled out an old necklace with a silver chain. Romana examined the familiar pearl locket that hung from the unpolished chain for a moment before putting it on. "There we are. Hair looks fine. Dress in order. Shoes on. Locket around neck. All set." Romana listed as she sashayed out of her room and closed the door.

Something crinkled under Romana's foot. She raised her left foot to find a pink rose petal smooshed to the underside of her sole. "Why is there " She saw a few more petals leading down the corridor, sighed and peeled the flower petal from her shoe. "Another mess for me to clean up." She began picking up each petal individually which surprisingly didn't take as much time as expected. Soon enough, she found herself in the kitchen with an armful of pink rose petals.

The Doctor spotted Romana out of the corner of his eye and pivoted his head towards her. "I see you've found your way "

"You left these in the corridors." Romana interrupted as she disposed of the wilting petals into the TARDIS organic waste receptacle unit.

The Doctor blushed. "Yes, I did. They were for you."

"Really? For me to clean up?"

"No, so you could find your way to the kitchen."

"You don't think I could find the kitchen on my own? Do you really think I'm that ignorant?"

"No, I just thought it would help move things along quicker wait that came out wrong "

"So you think I'm slow?"

"No, I I I" He sighed as he found himself at a loss for words. "It was supposed to be...uhm... thoughtful."

"In what way are dying plants strewn about the floor, thoughtful?"

"It just is!" the Doctor snapped, "It was meant as a kind and thoughtful gesture. I just wanted to make you feel special..." he trailed off as he rubbed his neck, dropping his eyes to the floor. The few minutes to follow filled the air with awkward silence.

She huffed, "What have you brought me to the kitchen for anyway?"

The Doctor looked back up at her and grinned. "For breakfast of course!" He motioned to the table set for two and turned back to the stove. "Go ahead, sit down." The Doctor switched off the burner and made way for the table holding a plate of pancakes in one hand and sugar free syrup in the other.

She sat in the chair opposite of the one with the obvious scarf and coat hanging from it. "Doctor, you didn't have to go and do that. I could've made my own breakfast. I'm very capable. In fact, I often make you breakfast!"

"Exactly! That's why I thought I would make you breakfast for a change."

"Oh, how kind of you."

"I know it is." He smirked.

"You're definitely not modest though."

"Here you are, your favorite, blueberry pancakes! A wonderful breakfast for an even more wonderful timelady." The Doctor beamed with a charm not many could resist. He plated two pancakes each for Romana and him.

"May I ask as to what brought on all of this?"

The Doctor stopped mid bite in hesitation, his eyes quickly broke away from Romana's gaze and shifted to the plate sitting before him. "I only wanted to show my appreciation for you."

"Well, now I feel guilty."

The Doctor snickered, his mouth still full of pancakes.

"Don't laugh at me." Romana snapped bitterly.

"I'm trying not to but, you're making it next to impossible not to do so."

"There's no such thing as impossible, only improbable."

"Would you eat your food before it gets cold?"

"If you would stop addressing me, then I could eat."

"You want to sit in silence for the remainder of breakfast?"

"Yes! I would like that very much!"

"You know what then, fine."

"Good!" Romana exclaimed calmly.

The Doctor sat back in his chair, arms folded, for he had already ate his share. Romana continued to eat at an appropriate pace but the Doctor was growing impatient. He opened his mouth to speak however, Romana shot him a glare that spoke volumes in the silence of the moment. He restrained himself from uttering a word because he knew that if he spoke it would only start another argument. Before long, she finished and the Doctor spoke, "Was it to your liking?"

"The meal or you managing not to talk for ten minutes while I ate?" retorted Romana as she took the dishes and placed them in the sink.

"I meant the pancakes. Were they satisfactory?" he asked, secretly seeking her approval.

"Yes, indeed they were. How did you make them? You're not exactly known to be a master chef." She began to wash the plates and utensils.

"I used your cook book." the Doctor looked behind him to see Romana at the sink in her handmade dress and barked at her, "Don't do that!"

"What is it now?" Romana whined.

"I'll wash the dishes," the Doctor offered kindly, standing up and squeezing his way past the island and leaned over the sink.

"Let's wash them together."

"Why don't you go get ready to leave?"

"I am ready to leave." Romana spun in her dress to emphasize that she was already clothed properly. "What do you think?" She waited for him to respond with one of his signature witty compliments.

"You're wearing that?"

"Yes...Don't you like it?" Romana frowned slightly, she'd thought the Doctor would've been more enthusiastic about her dress, after all, she wore it for him.

"It's neither here nor there whether or not I like it. All that matters is that you're happy!" The Doctor thought she looked absolutely stunning in the dress. He fancied it even more so then Romana did. But he wouldn't ever admit to that. If he did, his cards would be on the table, revealed for her to see. "Could you do me a small favor, Romana?"

"Yes," she perked up, "What can I do to assist you?"

"Would you go into my room and fetch me my hat, please?"

"Surely."

"Thank you."

Romana turned on her heel and started to his living quarters. The Doctor watched her as she left. As soon as the sound of her footsteps vanished, he quietly set down the dishes and washed off his hands. Not taking notice that he was wiping them with a dirty dishrag, the Doctor shuffled over to his scarf and coat that hung off the chair, he was sitting on only moments before, and reached into his right hand pocket looking for a note. "Where is that infernal piece of paper?" He squawked frantically searching for the note that had inscribed on it a certain message of sorts. "Nothing but lint in this one!" He shook his hand and reached inside the other. An open jellybaby packet that settled but, nothing else. "Where did I leave it?" He stood befuddled for a moment or two before he came to the conclusion he'd left it on his nightstand. "Uh oh," He facepalmed at his major mistake. "Damn!" The Doctor grabbed his coat and scarf, quickly booking it through the corridors towards his room.

 **(Chapter Two: The Note)**

The Doctor practically flew through the maze that was the TARDIS. He knew it better than the back of his hand. His shoes clomping with every stride he made. The Doctor thought he could multi-task and tried putting on his coat and scarf but, instead tripped and fell with a heavy thud.

"Ow." He rocked himself back and forth on the ground in an attempt to ease what seemed to be pain, he sputtered barely able to breathe. "Ohhhhhhh, Romana..."

"Doctor?" A voice echoed from around the corner.

"Romana..."

Suddenly Romana rushed down the hall to find the Doctor, lying in distress, on the floor. One hand halfway in his coat arm and the other clutching his scarf. "Doctor!" She crouched down beside the Doctor and sat him up. He groaned as she pulled him into a slouched sitting position on the floor. "What happened!"

"Oh you know, Just me being my clumsy self," he droned painfully.

"Stay here, I'll go get the first aid kit."

"I'll be waiting."

Romana dashed off down the corridors, once again, to tend to his needs.

The Doctor scrambled to his feet and straightened his posture without any trouble. "Wow, she bought it." The Doctor mumbled as he walked, perfectly unharmed, into his bedroom. His eyes immediately darted to his nightstand where the note sat untouched. It was exactly as he left it. At least that's what he thought. A wave of relief washed over the Doctor as he let out an overdue sigh. His feet scuffed along the floor as he shuffled to the scrap of paper. "I never fail to amaze myself "

"I thought I told you not to move." Romana stood, with her arms crossed, in the doorway holding the first aid kit.

The Doctor stopped dead in his tracks. "I thought I heard something down the hall," he paused, "slithering "

"So you go off to investigate?"

He turned around rather quickly. "Had it been a serpent of some kind you'd be thanking me."

"But it wasn't and I told you to stay put."

"Yes but, Yours and K-9's safety is always top priority."

"And yours isn't?" Romana said sharply as she stepped towards him.

The Doctor backed into his nightstand and nearly knocked over the one of a kind lamp he took with him when he ran away from Gallifrey. "I never said that."

"Yes however, you implied it."

He frantically felt around, with his hand, behind him for the note. "That wasn't my intention."

Romana noticed he was acting strange, more so than usual. "What are you doing?"

His index finger gently brushed the carefully creased paper, swiped it from the nightstand's smoothed surface and snuck it into the back pocket of his pants. "Standing in my living quarters talking to you."

"No. Why are your hands behind your back? What are you hiding?"

"I'm not hiding anything."

"Then let me see your hands." Romana ordered as she began invading the Doctor's personal space.

He pulled his hands out from behind his back and held them up as if he were surrendering. He opened and closed both of his hands to show they were empty. "See? Nothing." The Doctor smiled knowing he was throwing her off his scent.

Romana glared at him with suspicion in her eyes. "Are you hurt? You seemed to be in pain only a few moments ago when I found you on the ground moaning and whimpering like a wounded child."

"No, I'm fine. Just bruised my ego." the Doctor reassured.

"I guess you won't be needing this." Romana sighed doubtingly as she set the first aid kit on his nightstand. "Did you find your hat?"

He chuckled, "Is it on my head?"

"From what I can see, no it isn't."

"Then, no. I still have yet to find my hat." the Doctor remarked with a charming smirk.

"Are you sure you left it in here?"

"I'm forty three point seventy nine percent sure that I brought it in here with me when I went to sleep last night."

"That's not even half of what is supposed to be completely sure." she mumbled under her breath.

"Does it matter?" The Doctor snarled at her slightly.

"There's no reason to be nasty."

"You started it. I was only responding in the same manner in which I was addressed."

She saw the hat was peeking from behind his foot. "Move." She pushed him out of the way. Romana nudged the hat from beneath the bed with her foot, picked it up and dusted it off. "Here." She plopped the hat onto the Doctor's head, covering his eyes. "Happy now?"

"Jubilant and visually impaired."

Romana shook her head and giggled at his foolish, child-like behavior. "You look ridiculous."

The Doctor fixed his hat. "I don't look ridiculous. I think I look rather dashing." He said as he slipped his coat on again.

"You said you had things planned. Where are we going?" she inquired dismissively.

"That is for me to know and for you to find out." He finished looping the scarf over his shoulders, letting it droop far below his torso, it sagged on the floor, he would regret it later when Romana would step on it intentionally just to annoy him.

"Is K-9 coming with us?"

"K-9 is powered down for the time being. I still need to pick up a few more parts before I can fully repair and clear him for travel." Romana gave the Doctor a worrisome look.

"Don't worry. He'll be fine." He gazed at her and offered his arm for her to be escorted to the console room. "Shall we?"

"Come on! You take far too long!" Romana grabbed the Doctor's hand and proceeded to drag him down the halls.

He placed his free hand on his hat so to be sure it wouldn't fly off while running. The Doctor watched Romana's hair whip through the air as they rushed to the console room.

"Could you be any slower?" Romana playfully teased.

"I don't know, would you mind speeding up?" He replied with a wild grin curling at the corners of his lips.

 **(Chapter Three: The Planet of Unexplained Peace)**

"So Doctor, mind telling me where we're going?"

"Not where we're going," He excitedly opened the TARDIS door. "Where we are!"

As they stepped out of the console room, a beauteous blue sky appeared before their eyes. The Doctor shut the TARDIS and locked it with his key.

"Intriguing."

"Intriguing? Why this is the small, humble city of Harren on the planet of Denglore."

"I'm not very familiar with the planet Denglore "

"Look around you! Bright day, people bustling in the market square!" the Doctor inadvertently interrupted.

"Rare patterns in the, albeit, primitive architecture for one thing. I've never seen anything quite like it." Romana's analytical view of their adventures was an earful of garbled nonsense to the Doctor. But that's how Romana was and even if he denied it, in a way, the Doctor thought it was sort of cute.

"It's the only inhabited planet in the solar system."

"Well, that explains "

"Come on, we have much to do and so little time!" The Doctor cut Romana off mid sentence, he let go of her hand, put his arm around her shoulder and guided her through a crowd of busy strangers. They walked past several vendors at the local bazaar, some sold produce, others sold jewels and clothing. She kept her eyes forward and ignored any of their attempts to get her attention, as did the Doctor. He steered her away from the loud scene and towards a large gate that had hidden behind it a vast garden home to the beautiful wildlife of Harren. "I thought you might care to take in a bit of the scenery."

"I wouldn't mind strolling through and observing some of the unique flora and fauna." However, there was a small sign nailed to the towering wooden gate, just above the Doctor's eye level. It read 'No Entry, Dangerous Infestation'

"That throws a wrench into my plans."

Romana shifted her attention to the Doctor. "How so?"

"I was going to take you to look at the flowers. Then after that, I was going to take you out to lunch. But, I haven't any clue as to what we are to do for the next few hours."

"There must be something we could do until then." She proposed.

The Doctor fussed with his hat, repositioning it at different angles, to distract himself from his disappointment. Romana scooted a bit closer to the Doctor and offered a comforting alternative. "How about we go to a museum or an art gallery? Does that hold any interest?"

"I don't see why not. I think I recall of a history center just around the bend..." He pointed behind her dismissively.

"Well, what are we waiting for?" She broke away from his hold and started walking in the direction he pointed. The Doctor's eyes followed Romana for a few seconds before he galloped to her side and matched his pace to hers. The two sauntered beside each other in a joyous silence. They needn't speak, instead the two absorbed conversations around them. Piecing together what it must be like in the everyday life of the natives. Romana stared forward as they marched through the powerful flow of pedestrians. The Doctor focused on the primitive buildings as they passed by, resisting the urge to take Romana's hand and guide her through the clump of strangers.

"Not much further. It's supposed to be right around the corner." the Doctor rattled.

"Were you educated on this planet prior to our arrival?"

"On the history of the planet? Only slightly. I know a few things about it. But I didn't study it closely."

"How did you come to find this planet?"

"Well one night whilst you were fast asleep. The randomizer malfunctioned during repairs. It brought me to this planet. I went into the city to purchase a few tools that might prove useful for me when working on the TARDIS "

"Why were you making repairs when you should've been resting?"

"That's not important I was engaged by a man in the street. He greeted me and asked if I was from off planet. Of course I said yes and he then went on to tell me about Denglore."

"So you know much more about the planet than I do?"

"I guess you could put it that way." He smiled, it was rare for Romana to not know everything about everything.

"Then you'll have to teach me as we go along. However, this doesn't give you any authority or power over me."

"Oh, I wouldn't dream of it." he remarked.

"Is that it?" She pointed to the lone grey building they were walking towards. It seemed to stand apart from everything else.

"Yes, I do believe that it is."

"It seems rather out of place, odd don't you think?"

"Now, now, Romana. We must not judge a book by it's cover." The Doctor and Romana maneuvered through the clots of people blocking their path until they reached the front entrance. He held the door open for her as they went inside.

"Fascinating." Romana mumbled, somewhat surprised by the initial impression of the museum.

"Gosh, It's chock full of stuff in here! I certainly didn't expect this."

"Where would you like to start?"

"Today is your day so you decide..." he said quietly, fiddling with the tassels on his scarf, to avoid eye contact as shyness crept into his subconscious .

She turned to see the Doctor ogling at his scarf in silence. "What's the matter?" The Doctor gave no response and didn't move an inch. He was daydreaming, though it wasn't clear to Romana, he was thinking about her. And in quite a flattering manner to say the very least. "Doctor?" Again he didn't reply, nor did he flinch. He was lost in his own little world, the Doctor was pondering how silky her hair must feel, how she always managed to smell so wonderful and what soft, small delicate hands she had. "Doctor!" Romana shouted, concern laced her voice as it echoed through the practically lifeless museum. She nudged the Doctor to snap him from what seemed to be a trance. He was shaken from his daydream.

The Doctor raised his head and snickered at Romana's fearful expression. "I'm sorry, I was thinking. Did I scare you?"

Her fear twisted into annoyance. She contemplated if it would be worth it backhanding the Doctor. Romana decided that slapping him wouldn't make anything better. "Why must you insist on irritating me?"

"Oh, I don't mean to. I'm sorry Romana. Please tell me when I do so."

"Guess what? You're doing it right now!" She poked his chest and trudged towards one of the exhibits. The Doctor rubbed the tender spot on his chest that she violently poked, as if it hurt, and scurried after the now vexed Romana, eventually catching up to her.

Romana's dress bounced with her every move. She crossed her arms to try to guilt trip the Doctor. Which did nothing but make her even more adorable in his eyes. "There's not much difference between the time periods besides the rate of advancement. This planet is overall peaceful and dull." he jawed.

"It's peaceful, it's the only inhabited planet in the solar system, just like you said."

"Yes but I'm talking about no wars ever taking place in the history of all Denglore."

Romana swiveled around, staring directly at the Doctor. "What do you mean? There had to have been a conflict of some sort that involved two or more sides with differing opinions and massive followings."

"Apparently not, the records kept of this planet date back as far as the dawn of civilization. Last time I was here, I read nothing of any wars."

"You must've missed something. How could a population such as this one, evolve to an extraordinary standing of peace without learning from mistakes of their own? Since there are no inhabitants settled on the neighboring planets, there was nothing to influence this planet's progression or show a path to lead to peace. It simply makes no sense."

"I'm beginning to doubt this planet is as it appears to be..."

"Might we find a few clues in the exhibits that could answer why Denglore has such a calm background and history?"

"Yes, there should be something that could explain this confusion." He began wandering away from the entrance. "Come on." the Doctor shouted to Romana.

"I'm coming! I'm coming!" She barreled past the Doctor laughing up a storm. Romana zipped out of his sight.

Romana's voice rang out around the bend. "Oh, I'm terribly sorry."

The Doctor sped up turning the corner to see Romana helping a woman in uniform picking up papers that flew from a file folder that was now currently sitting open on the floor. "Hello there."

"Thank you, ma'am." the uniformed woman squeaked.

"No need to thank me, it was my fault. I wasn't watching where I was going." Romana said putting the papers in the folder and handing it to the woman. She looked up at the Doctor with an expression of embarrassment.

"You're quite right Romana, you should watch where you're going. You could've hurt this attractive young lady." He turned to address the uniformed woman as he helped her to her feet. "I apologize for her. She's a bit reckless. Are you alright?"

Romana's smile diminished to a subtle grimace. To Romana it seemed that he was captivated by the alluring young stranger. A feeling of jealousy tainted her view of the Doctor's intentions.

The woman stuttered, "I'm-I'm fine, really."

The Doctor finished dusting off the woman's uniform still holding her hand. "There we are. Much better. I don't think I've properly introduced myself. I'm the Doctor and this is my clumsy companion, Romana. We're from off planet. Would you mind telling us where the information directory is?"

"I'm Melanie. Melanie Fischer. I work here as an exhibit docent. I could show you around if you wanted."

"That sounds wonderful! I think we'll take you up on your offer. Won't we Romana?" The Doctor released Melanie's dainty hand from his grip, turning back to Romana who stood with a fake smile plastered across her face.

"Yes, let's immerse ourselves in the history of Denglore." she said sarcastically.

"That's the spirit!" he exclaimed joyously, "Lead the way!" His smile bubbled with overflowing enthusiasm.

 **(Chapter Four: The Leader of Light)**

"If you look to your left you'll see an ancient scroll. This artifact was recovered from the ruins of Terravan one of the last civilizations to crumble before the New Age of Denglore. It says and I quote 'The Leader of Light shall carry the torch of obedience for all to follow in the days to come. He sees all, knows all, and is all. Those who disobey the Leader of Light are punished by the eternal burning flames of Curxia. Then banished to the endless shadow. Never again to be graced by his beams of order and peace.' What the scroll told of is what our culture believes is the prophecy of our all powerful leader. But that's a story for another time." Melanie informed, continuing the tour as they ventured deeper into the heart of the building.

Romana gently nudged the Doctor trying to regain his attention. "Doctor?"

"Shhh. Not now, Romana. Melanie is speaking." Romana's expression turned sour. The Doctor payed her no mind. This left a rather bitter taste in Romana's mouth. He failed to notice her frustration. As usual, he was oblivious to Romana's emotional distress. The Doctor thought listening to Melanie's silky voice while she guided them through Denglore's history was quite enjoyable. Romana made an effort to hide her jealousy, had anyone else been present they would've spotted it almost immediately. She hated that he was so attracted to Melanie. Even though, in reality, he wasn't. Unfortunately, the Doctor remained unaware of Romana's envy and therefore could do nothing fix the situation.

After a half an hour of Melanie's endless droning, the Doctor decided he wanted to amuse Romana with the witty banter he conjured up in his moments of silence. He couldn't help but chuckle, he found himself to be be terribly funny. In order to capture her focus, the Doctor gently elbowed Romana's side. "Ow!" Romana yelped. Her head twisted to face the Doctor with a seething petulance showing in her eyes and wrinkled up nose.

The Doctor cringed slightly, perhaps that was more of a sharp jab than anything else.

"Oops sor " Before he could say anymore, Romana returned the favor by socking him in the stomach with as much force she could manage. Being that Romana was much smaller than himself, it surprised him how hard her punches were. The Doctor choked back a whimper as she stomped away from him. Incredible, she nearly knocked the wind right out of him! The Doctor was clueless as to why Romana was so cross. After all, he didn't mean to hurt her. He tried reading her body language. She was strutting along side Melanie. A part of him thought she was playing hard to get. But something told him that wasn't it. The Doctor quickened his pace until he was within reach of the two shorter women. This time, he lightly tapped Melanie's shoulder, addressing her politely. "Miss Fischer "

"Oh, please call me Melanie!"

His lips curled upwards in response to her friendliness. "Melanie, would you excuse Romana and I?"

"Certainly! Take as much time as you need."

"Thank you, we'll only be a moment." The Doctor nodded as he took Romana by the hand, practically dragging her from Melanie's side. He led her around the corner, out of Melanie's view, to speak in hushed tones. "What was that for?"

"You jostled my ribcage!" she whispered harshly.

"I didn't mean to!"

"Then what were you trying to do? Bury your elbow in my chest cavity?"

"I was only trying to get your attention! Why are you so wound up?"

She stood silent with her eyes trained on his.

"Romana, what's the matter?"

"Nothing."

"Oh don't you give me that! What's wrong? Tell me."

"What makes you think that something is wrong?"

"Well, you nearly knocked the wind out of me just a minute ago."

"Maybe if you'd keep yourself from gawking at Melanie "

"What do you mean? I wasn't gawking at her!"

Romana scoffed, "You most definitely were."

"Was not! I would never do such a thing!"

"Really? Because that's exactly what you were doing!"

"Romana, why would I stare at her, of all people?"

"Because she's attractive!" Romana clenched her fists at her sides, beginning to lose her patience.

"Not as much as you are!" the Doctor blurted without thinking. Then realizing what he said, his cheeks turned beat red. As did Romana's.

She spoke in a soft, quiet voice. "Y you think...that I'm...attractive?"

He was thoroughly embarrassed. The Doctor never did truly express his feelings for her before. Not directly at least. He had no idea what to say, the Doctor turned away and started back towards Melanie, with his head down and his hands shoved into the pockets of his coat.

Romana chuckled quietly to herself as he walked out of sight. "He thinks I'm attractive." She sashayed down the hall to regroup with the Doctor and, to a lesser extent, Melanie. "Doctor?"

He cleared his throat before answering Romana. "Yes?"

"Shouldn't we be heading to lunch?"

The Doctor stood with a puzzled look on his face for a moment. Then remembered he mentioned that he was going to take her to lunch. "Ah, yes! We should have just enough time to arrive on schedule!" He spun around to face Melanie. "It was really a pleasure meeting you Melanie but I'm afraid it is time for Romana and I to leave." The Doctor shook her hand and linked arms with Romana.

Romana smiled. He finally was paying attention to her. She leaned towards Melanie and offered to shake her hand. Melanie firmly gripped Romana's hand and shook it for more than a few seconds. Slightly longer than what seemed appropriate but, Romana didn't acknowledge it. "Glad to have met you, Melanie. You take care of yourself."

"Oh, I will!" Melanie looked at the Doctor and then at Romana. "Doctor, Romana, I bid thee adieu." She suddenly dispersed into particles and then vanished completely, right in front of both of them.

Romana turned white as snow. It was as if she'd seen a ghost. The Doctor was just as surprised however, his face didn't show it as much as hers did.

The building around them transformed into a brick walled dungeon. Grey, mossy, blocks of captivity. Torches that flickered and crackled in the darkness replaced the swaying, shimmering rays of refracted light of the candle lit chandeliers that hung from the museum ceiling.They were bathed in shadows and dim flames, arms still linked, Romana was frightened. "Doctor, what just happened?"

He reached for his sonic and scanned their surroundings. Then listened to the consecutive bleeps. "If I heard correctly, according to the scan, what we saw before was an interactive holographic environment. Everything we saw, was computer generated."

"Melanie as well?"

"She was an image projected onto our brains. That's why when we shook her hand it seemed as if it was solid. However, she might've been an image of an actual person instead of an electrically animated figure "

"Yes, I know how cranial projection works, Doctor."

"Well you asked."

Suddenly, a machine of some type sparked to life. It growled from the other side of the wall. Romana saw, with the little light there was, smoke at their feet, something began feeding the room with a foggy gas. She realized something and began to panic. "Doctor! It's a gas chamber! Hold your breath!" He immediately took a deep breath, covering his mouth and nose. He led Romana to the wall and they each pressed a hand against the cold stone structure, looking for a door in the dark.

"Feel for a door or an exit way of some kind." The Doctor stammered with his hand cupped over his face, muffling his words.

Romana had her hand on the wall when she started to feel heavy. Her body began to weigh her down. She managed to mutter something prior to collapsing of exhaustion in the Doctor's arms. "Doctor, I'm falling..."

He too began to feel tired and heavy. The Doctor knew it was a matter of seconds before he too fainted, he quickly kneeled on the floor and gently set Romana down. He put something in one of her hidden pockets and passed out before anything else could be done. The fog had overcome the both of them.

 **(Chapter Five: Separated)**

The Doctor and Romana lie helplessly on the cold stone floor. A ray of light seeped into the room as a thick, rusty, metal door squeaked open.

Two mysterious beings dressed in tunics, as if they were monks of some sort, trudged into the gas chamber. The taller one spoke with a feminine voice. "We are to put them in separate cells. Then he shall determine which is worthy of his light." The other unidentified figure motioned for three more entities, like itself, to come in and take the Doctor away. They disappeared down the hallway carrying the unconscious timelord. One of the remaining figures threw Romana over it's shoulder and walked out of the chamber as the last of the unknown ones shut the heavy door behind them.

It was almost completely silent in the passageways with the exception of shallow footsteps echoing as they neared a section of enclosed cells. Romana, still out cold, was brought into a wide hall with metal doors. The figure carrying her, like a sack of flour, stood aside allowing it's counterpart to open the cell door. Romana was leaned against the wall and locked in her cell. She wasn't aware of anything that was taking place. Her mind was at peace, it was cut off from the situation, for the time being. However, elsewhere, it was just the opposite for the Doctor.

He cooperated in being escorted by the three monks. Just as the Doctor previously thought, he was being taken to a holding cell.

The monks led him down a hall, different from the one Romana's cell was in. This one had barred cells, they had more exposed area, where as hers were closed off and private.

The Doctor knew he couldn't over power them so he willingly stepped into the cell. He gave the sonic screwdriver some thought as they locked the door. The Doctor's face was twisted into one of his relentless smirks. One of the monks stayed to keep an eye on him.

"Don't I get a phone call?" the Doctor snickered.

"You'll be lucky if you live to see another few hours." growled the monk.

"Why? I'm in perfect health! I'm only in my first few regenerations. It is highly unlikely that I'll be deceased in the next century! Let alone within the next few hours."

"Your incoherent babbling won't save you."

"Save me? Save me from what?"

"Him. He has yet to decide your fate."

"Who?"

"Our Leader. The all powerful entity of light."

"Ahh, I see. Or more commonly known as the Leader of Light." the Doctor said. Standing confidently next to the bars of his cell. He felt around in his pocket and pulled something out. The monk peered from the corner of his eye, out of curiosity, to see what it was the Doctor had in his hand.

"Would you like a jellybaby?" The Doctor held out his packet of colorful candies through the bars.

He was unsure and hesitant, he didn't know whether or not it was a trick. The monk straightened his tunic, cleared his throat and reached for one of the peculiar multi colored sweets. He randomly picked a red jellybaby and popped it in his mouth. It pleasantly surprised him. The expression of delight on his face told the Doctor that he might've just made a new acquaintance.

Meanwhile, Romana was awoken due to how uncomfortably cold she felt. The stone wall she was leaned against was like ice on her skin. In addition, to the freezing temperatures, her vision was compromised. It was hard enough to see in such poorly lit rooms. She squinted to see what little light there was on the other side of the small window on her cell door. Where she was sitting, nothing was visible. Romana slowly brought herself to her feet and stumbled over to the door. From what she could make out, there was a shadow. It was a person. Someone was standing outside of the door. She let out a dry cough. She didn't need to speak to know her throat was still affected by the harsh chemicals that were used in the gas chamber.

Thoughts were buzzing in and around her head. Then everything stopped, one thought was the center of attention, all other concerns melted away. "Where is the Doctor?" He wasn't in the room with her, so where was he? With her raspy voice, she asked the person loitering in the hall. "Where am I?"

"You're in a cell." the figure responded plainly.

She rolled her eyes. "Where is the cell?"

"Right where you're standing."

It was obvious Romana wasn't going to get any real answers from whomever it was in the hall guarding her cell. But, she tried again. "Could you tell me something? Anything?" The man was silent as the grave. "How about you tell me your name."

"Will it make you shut up?"

"Maybe."

He huffed in annoyance. "My name is Brodovin."

"I'm Romanadvoratrelundar. You may call me Romana if you wish."

"What kind of a name is Romanadvora What you said."

"It's Gallifreyan. What kind of name is Brodovin?"

"It's Fortuinain." Brodovin spat.

"Well, now that we know each other. Could you tell me where I am or at least what I'm doing here?"

He rolled his eyes and groveled in response. "You're here awaiting judgement."

"Judgement? Am I on trial?"

"No, you're being pitted against another to duel for your life. You'll be judged on your intellect and loyalty."

"Against who?"

"That information is strictly prohibited."

She crossed her arms. Romana was worried. The feeling was mutual for both her and the Doctor.

The Doctor was conversing with the monk that was supposedly guarding his cell. The Doctor was being his usual charismatic self however, in the back of his mind, he was wondering if Romana was alright. What if something were to happen to her? He wouldn't be able to forgive himself if any harm was inflicted upon her.

"Grivet, there was another. A young woman, blonde hair, white dress with blue floral print. Do you know where they took her or if she's okay?"

"Sorry, Doc. I don't know anything about a girl." Girvet lied through his teeth.

"Oh...well could you tell me why I'm here?"

"You? You're being tested and compared against someone else to see if you're worthy of taking a position of high account to assist our Leader. If you turn out to be smarter than your opponent, you live and they die. If your opponent is smarter than you are, you die and they take the position."

"Who's my opponent?"

"That's the thing, I don't know." he sniveled. Girvet knew exactly who the Doctor was going to face. The Doctor grew quiet. His brain started to pulse, filling with fearful thoughts. "You better hope you're the intellectual superior. Otherwise..." Girvet dragged his finger across his throat signifying one of the things the Doctor faced quite often, death.

He was determined to stay alive, for Romana. She was the light at the end of the tunnel. He had to find her and get her to safety. Though this was a harsh thought. He would do just about anything to make sure that she was safe and sound. Even if it meant having to beat out an opponent for his life. It went against his morals, to sacrifice someone else's life for your own. Such a terrible act of selfishness and greed. A toxic decision he would have to execute and live with for the rest of his life. But, if it was going to keep Romana alive and well, he was going to do it without hesitation.

Little did either of them know, that the ones they were fighting for were the same people they would soon face in an arena of intellectual warfare.

 **(Chapter Six: Escape Before the Game)**

Romana paced in her cell, shivering, unable to stop her teeth from chittering because of how cold she felt. She was rubbing her arms in an attempt to keep herself warm. She dropped them at her sides. It didn't help in the least. Her hands crept into her dress' hidden pockets. To her surprise, there was something in the left one. She hesitantly grasped the object and slowly lifted the mysterious item from the carefully stitched slit in her dress, it was revealed to her that the Doctor's sonic screwdriver had somehow made it's way into her possession. Her eyes widen with hope. It could be her ticket out of the unbearably dark cell in which she was being held. Romana spun around and faced the doorway of her cell. It was the same type of door that the gas chamber used. A thick, heavy, old, metal door.

She quickly peeked through the door's window, out into the hall, to see if Brodovin dozed off or walked away. His back was pressed against the wall with his hood covering his eyes. It seemed as if he was resting. There was a chance that she could sneak by without waking him. The sonic screwdriver buzzed for a couple moments whilst Romana fiddled with the lock. Then silence fell over the entire hallway. She dropped the sonic back into her pocket.

Romana cracked the door to look out and see if anyone else was passing through. It was deserted. She opened the door even more, stepping into the hall. To the right, there was an immovable wall. To the left was the resting Brodovin and a passage leading away from the holding area. She took a deep breath, pivoted herself away from the wall and quickly slunk past the sleepy monk.

Romana proceeded to rush through the endless maze of passages. Taking random turns without much thought. Thinking of only one thing, The Doctor. Romana breezed through the stony passages as fast as her feet would carry her, making the least noise possible. She came to a screeching halt at an intersection of four halls. There was a monk blocking her path. Tall, dark, and unidentifiable. Whomever or whatever it was under that dirt covered cloak, it wasn't going to allow Romana to slip away again. She turned her head, slightly to the left and right, to see three other monks in her peripheral vision. The monks were blocking all possible escape routes. She was surrounded. They stood still in a drowning silence for a moment or two. Then, they each took a step forward. Again and again. The monks drew closer and closer until all four of them reached out and grabbed Romana.

"Let me go! Where's the Doctor?! Let go! I need to find the Doctor! DOCTOR!" Romana squirmed and screamed under the grasp of the hooded figures. She kicked and jolted her body, struggling to break free. "Let me go! Ahhh! Doctor!"

A disembodied voice spoke out above everything. "Take her to the Indoctrination room. She is to be disciplined."

All four monks replied simultaneously. "Yes, almighty leader. It shall be done."

"DOCTOR!" Romana's voiced echoed far enough to just barely in earshot of the Doctor.

The Doctor heard Romana, his head abruptly snapped towards the sound of her voice. Worry and relief stirred in his eyes. "ROMANA! ROMANA I'M HERE!" His voice bounced back to her.

But by the time his voice reached her, a monk held a chemically stained cloth over her nose and mouth. She was muffled by fabric. It all faded for Romana. She slipped back into a tranquil and dormant state. Her body went limp, like a pretty doll. Beautiful and lifeless. Unable to defend or decide for herself.

The Doctor clinged to the bars of his cell. "ROMANA?!" He turned back to Girvet, gripped his tunic and cloak through the bars and demanded answers. "Where is she? What have you done with her?"

"I I I don't know anything. I-uhm haven't moved f f from this s spot." Girvet replied nervously. His face becoming squished between the metal bars.

"You don't know this about me but, I'm a very dangerous fellow when I don't know what I'm doing and right now I'm absolutely clueless. So enlighten me, what exactly is going on?"

"Y y y you "

"Go on! Spit it out!"

"Y you are battling someone else in a war of wits for not only your life but, a seat at the hand of our almighty leader."

"Why am I here? What is it that your Leader wants with me?"

"You're the Doctor, are you not?"

"I am! What does that have to do with anything?!"

"Y y you timetravel through all of space in a TARDIS. The Doctor. The man that can do anything. That can stop anyone. The timelord with all the questions. The one who thirsts for knowledge. A great ally to those who are fortunate enough to have him by their side and a worthy opponent to those who face him. The unbreakable, unstoppable, unshakable force that is you. He wants you by his side."

"Why didn't your Leader take me captive the last time I was here?"

"You weren't ready, neither was he. He waited until you proved your worth."

"Then why am I being tested if I've already proved my worth?"

"There is one thing you have yet to prove, your loyalty."

"What does any of this have to do with Romana? Why don't you and your Leader just let her go free?"

"Because then Doctor, you wouldn't have anything worth fighting for now would you?"

The Doctor's tone suddenly became dark and intimidating."My patience is running thin, Girvet, tread lightly and be careful of what you say. I wish to speak with your leader immediately."

"You can't. Not until you defeat your opponent at least."

"Well, you can tell your all powerful leader that until I have confirmation and proof that Romana is completely safe, I'm not complying with any of his demands." The Doctor released his grip on Girvet's tunic.

Girvet held up an empty needle and motioned to the Doctor's arm. The Doctor rolled up his coat sleeve just before his wrist to see he was injected with something, there was a small blot of blood where it had been administered. A familiar feeling of heaviness and uncontrollable tiredness washed over the Doctor. The floor swayed beneath him. His knees felt weak and wobbly. Unable to support himself any longer. He collapsed to the ground. His eyes slowly drooped before he drifted from consciousness. He heard only a few words as his awareness burned out. "Welcome to the game, Doctor."

 **(Chapter Seven: Pain, Discipline, and Brainwash)**

With Romana's hands behind her back she was being held by two monks, both grabbing her fragile arms, pulling her along as her feet dragged on the ridged stone floor. Romana's head slumped to the point where her chin touched her chest.

A soldier in armor, standing to the left of a set of double doors, shouted as the monks strutted down the hall. "OPEN THE DOORS!"

The clink clank of rusty chains, pulleys and levers creaked as the doors cranked open. Romana eyes opened and her head shot up to see she was being hauled into yet another room. Seconds later, she was thrown into the room, knocking over a white chair that sat next to a small white table and a grey stool on the other side of it. Luckily, Romana caught herself before almost bashing her head into one of the four blindingly white walls that remained secluded and tucked away in a corner of, what she believed was, a medieval monastery. The soldier standing outside of the double doors shouted, "SHUT THE DOORS!"

Romana stood with her hands planted on the wall as her breath steadied. The doors closed with a solid metal bang. A man dressed in all white, who was standing in the room's back right corner, moved to the table and put the chair in it's correct position. He gripped Romana's forearm and forced her into the white chair, it was unnecessary seeing that she wasn't exactly resisting. However, Romana wasn't really cooperating either. There were chainless silver cuffs attached to each arm of the chair, she was hesitant about allowing herself to be strapped down and interrogated but, she didn't want to be sedated again. It frightened Romana, the thought of not being able to help herself. The man held her arms down while locking the clamps on her wrists. She could feel the metal biting into the soft skin of her gentle hands.

Suddenly, the clicking of another door sounded from behind her. It was different. Much quieter, though the hinge did squeal if it was opened slow enough. Romana looked up at the man that secured her in the chair. He was paying attention to was standing in the doorframe of the easy entrance way. A commanding male voice spoke. "You are excused. Leave us."

"Yes, Father Luridious." The man walked out in a calm and orderly manner, shutting the door behind him. It clicked as it closed.

Romana could tell by the heavy pitter patter of the voice's shoes, that he was confident in the way he was walking. Her eyes were fixed on the table, she could feel his stare burning into the back of her head.

A man in a dark grey hooded robe entered her field of view but, she didn't look directly at him. He removed his hood, revealing the tightened young skin, a blackened beard and seething mahogany eyes that pierced Romana's attention and pulled her focus to him. She glared at him and waited for him to speak. "Hello, I'm Father Luridious." His voice had snuck into her mind without the words ever leaving his mouth. Romana narrowed her eyes at him.

"I will kindly ask you to get out of my head." Romana replied aloud.

"Oh, a bit feisty are we? You needn't worry. I know who you are...Romana." His lips didn't even quiver, instead he used his mind once more to communicate with her.

"I said get out of my head!"

"Oh fine! Have it your way." Father Luridious shouted aloud.

"What is it that you want?"

"I'm not here to take anything."

"Then why are you here? And for what reason am I being held against my will?"

"Simple. You're the equivalent to that of a rebellious child. Therefore, someone must teach you obedience." Romana was stoned faced. She didn't respond to him. She was devising a plan to escape. He was reading her thoughts and saw that she had no intention of staying for very long. "Now, to start today's lesson!" Father Luridious cracked a sinister smile, then began making use of his powers of unknown origin and manipulated Romana's cerebral networks creating a most unpleasant sensation that rattled throughout her entire body.

She threw her head back and screeched in pain. It was the worst agony Romana had ever endured. Not only was her physical form suffering but, her sanity was compromised. Memories of lost ones, vivid visions of all she feared, layered guilt crushing her soul, it all piled on top of itself, everything that built up inside. Her hopes and dreams withered and vanished without warning. The life that she lived flashed and flickered before her in one swift move. Piece by piece, what remained was torn away with every passing moment. She yelled and shrieked until her voice grew quiet. A few tears slipped from her eyes. It was a consistent roaring pain that wouldn't stop. Romana's will was cracking, her body ached all over, she wasn't sure how much longer she could bare it. There was no running, no hiding, no escaping the imminent pain. The torture went on for a little while longer.

Father Luridious knew she was on the edge of surrender, he wanted to push her off it. He clenched his fist and the pain nearly crippled Romana where she sat. Paralyzing anguish entwined in her heart. Pulsing through her like a raging river of sorrow. Her lungs filled with an intoxicating misery. Her raspy voice finally managed to croak only fractured desperate words. "Please, make it stop. It's unbearable. I beg you, make it stop. You win. The hurt...It's overwhelming. Please just make it stop...I don't want to remember."

Luridious suddenly turned into a black smoke and overtook her body. She breathed him in, not able to resist. Romana was forced to take a back seat to a new driver, Luridious, and there wasn't a single thing she could do to stop him. Romana lost grip. Her will to do as she wished was snapped in two. Luridious broke her spirit. She was a strong woman but, couldn't withstand the shock and torment. Her defenses crumbled under his unexplained control over her state of being. She lost herself. Now her role was that of a marionette. To be used by her puppeteer, Luridious, as a pawn in a game of wits for the amusement of powerful cowards. She would do whatever she was told. For Romana was terrified, almost petrified of ever having to experience what she did in those moments. She'd never feel safe again, at least not until it was made certain that she had a protector of her own. But, how was anyone else to know that she was no longer the only one behind the mask of Romanadvoratrelundar.

 **(Chapter Eight: A Storybook Cliché)**

The Doctor woke up, slumped in a cushioned lounge chair sitting in a room stocked with the type of items used by the average person on a daily basis. However, it was surprisingly empty. The walls were wooden and filled the air with the smell of cedar. He sat up straight from his slouched position and took note of everything that was surrounding him. There were three articles of clothing laid out on the ottoman that was placed in front of him, at his feet. One being a tight long sleeved shirt, a baggy short sleeve shirt to go over that and a pair of loose casual slacks. All of which consisted of one color, a grey duller than any other the Doctor had ever seen.

He noticed a light switch and a bulb, that was lit, in the center of the ceiling. It was obvious that the monks not only knew about modern technology but, also had access to it. Unlike the rest of the city of Harren. Clearly, the monks both knew and possessed more than they let on. There were books, fifty at the most, stacked on what looked like an unstable shelf that was ready to collapse at any moment. A few woven baskets sat on the ground against an empty wall. Some held soap and cloths, others held bobbins of thread and thimbles.

It was rather quiet. Too quiet. The Doctor saw a door across the room. He stood quickly and walked briskly towards it. He took hold of the doorknob and twisted it. Just as he suspected, it was locked. Suddenly someone spoke, with a voice so deep and overpowering it could potentially slice and dissect the bravest of soldiers and turn them into scared fools, a voice that the Doctor was unfamiliar with. "Hello, Doctor."

The Doctor turned on his heel and surveyed the room. He carefully combed over nearly every detail of the room with eyes. No one was in sight. "Is someone there?"

"Yes, I am."

"Who are you and where are you hiding?" He slowly turned his head surveying the ceiling and walls with a steady eye in search of where the voice was emanating from.

"I'm not hiding."

The Doctor realised the voice was inside his head. Only it was not his voice, it was someone else in his head, speaking to him. This time he used his mind instead of his mouth to communicate. "Ah, the monks have a telepath amongst them. How peculiar."

"I'm not a monk, nor am I of human origin. For I am a god."

"Is that so? Well then tell me something, why am I in here?"

"Put on those clothes Doctor, if you ever want to see that precious little female friend of yours, you'll do as you are told." the voice responded in a calm manner.

The Doctor silently grimaced, he hated the idea of being ordered around. Especially, when he didn't know who it was that he was taking orders from or for what reason. In spite of that, he trudged back towards the clothes spread out on the footrest. He changed into the outfit that was left for him in a rather speedy fashion and threw his clothing over the back of the lounge chair he awoke in. "Now, what do you want me to do?" The Doctor shouted aloud in an irritated tone. He paused and waited a few moments. The voice didn't speak. It disappeared. The Doctor wasn't entirely sure if the voice was being silent or was no longer in his presence. Either way, he needed to escape and find Romana as .

The Doctor's attention was turned to the bookshelf next to the wall. Though it was a storybook mystery cliche, he thought that, despite it being a long shot, there might be a secret passage or something of that nature which could be triggered when one of the books was disturbed. He moved swiftly over to the bookcase and began pulling out books and returning them to their place, looking for a switch. He had a sliver of hope that it may just work. After removing each and every single book from it's place on the multiple shelves, the Doctor gave up on his hypothesis. He took another gander at the room around him and something caught his attention. There was a carpet in the middle of the floor. The main color was red but, it had detailed designs in black and brown scrawled all over it. Besides the fact of it tying the whole room together, which it did, there was a lip on the carpet. Not that it was completely out of the ordinary but it seemed worth investigating.

He side stepped his way to the carpet and knelt down next to it. The Doctor grabbed corner of the carpet and attempted to raise it up. It wouldn't budge more than eight inches. He pulled again. Something was holding it down. He looked across the room. The chair he was previously sitting in, was on it. The Doctor gave the carpet a hard quick tug and yanked it from beneath the lounge chair. He raised up the carpet again and was able to fold it back on itself. To the Doctor's surprise, there was a trap door with a large metal ring sunken into the wood. He smirked to himself as he scooted closer to the trap door and grasped the metal ring. He pulled it open and slid in just barely able to fit through the frame. He landed on his feet with minimum difficulty. Everything was white. The floor, the ceiling, the walls. It was certainly not what the he expected.

He was alone in a long hall. At both ends of the hall, was a door. Each one identical to the other. Behind one door was another room that would lead him closer to Romana. The other door would bring him nearer to the so called intellectual arena. The Doctor stood with a puzzling question in need of being answered. "Now, Which is the door that won't get me killed?" An exasperated sigh escaped him as he twisted his body's direction to the right and scurried to the door before of him. Surprisingly enough, the door was unlocked, the Doctor cautiously opened it. Inside, there was a similar white ceiling, floor accompanied by four bleach white walls. But in this room was a dusty white chair with a table to match and on the other side of that table was a puny, grey stool.

In the white chair there sat someone familiar but, the Doctor couldn't tell who it was. Their body was limp and their head was resting on their shoulder. If he wasn't mistaken, whomever it was, had passed out. The room was empty of anyone else other than the Doctor and the unconscious individual slumped in a visually awkward position. Since there seemed to be no threatening dangers, he entered the room, curious to see who it might be. He drew closer to the motionless body slouched in the chair until he was finally face to face with a young girl.

 **(Chapter Nine: Crowded Head Space)**

"Romana." Relief and surprise spilled from his mouth in silence as his jaw hung open. "Romana, wake up." The Doctor moved to gently shake her awake by the arm. "Oh, come on. Wake up," he whispered with worry. Nothing. He went to shake her shoulders but as soon as his rough hands brushed her cheek, her eyes snapped open.

She stared at him, helplessness dressing her lips. "Doctor…" her voice soothingly rang in his ears. There was a slight tension between the two and it was quickly vanishing like a puddle of rain evaporating under the hot summer sun, leaving only dusty remains. The Doctor noticed Romana's eyes. Different, not in color or size but, they seemed almost without compassion or memory as to who he was. Cold and unfeeling. As if their adventures together never took place. Maybe it was his paranoia, he didn't think much of it. "Please, Doctor, uncuff me."

"Yes, right!" He frantically searched his person for the sonic screwdriver and realized not only had he slipped it into Romana's pocket but that he'd changed clothes not moments before. He cleared his throat, "Ahem. Romana, you still have the sonic, right?"

"It's in my pocket…" she murmured. The Doctor hesitated to invade her space. He leaned towards Romana and reached into her pocket. Usually, this would've made Romana blush or even giggle however, her face remained pale as her voice was mute. Making her presence one of near lifelessness. He smirked at his handy device as he lifted it from the dress. But, he felt something shock him through the material, a weak electrical charge surged in his fingertips. The Doctor ignored it, wrote it off simply as a static charge release.

Romana watched intently as he adjusted the sonic, carefully studying how he operated it. Some point after this, Luridious planned to steal it for his own use. The Doctor unlocked the cuffs, shoved the gadget into one of the shallow grey slits on his borrowed slack and helped Romana to her feet. Being sure not to let her lose her lose balance, holding her hands to keep her steady. The Doctor caught Romana's gaze. "Are you alright? They didn't hurt you, did they?"

Inside Romana's head she screamed and hollered as loud as she could manage but was drowned out. For the trouble of an overpowering voice, Luridious. He laughed internally, she thought the Doctor would hear her in someway. How foolish of her. He was in complete control, what could she do to stop him? For the time being, she could do nothing. Luridious wore Romana's face and therefore had the Doctor at his beck and call. He figured vulnerability was the key to dispelling any suspicions the Timelord may have. And so Romana's lip began quivering. "Romana? Romana, what is it?"

She bowed her head as tears escaped her eyes and whimpered in response, "They tortured me!"

The Doctor stepped closer and embraced her in a tight hug. He rested his head on hers and spoke softly. "I'm sorry, I'm here now." The Doctor couldn't see it. The real difference. Luridious turned Romana's beautiful smile into a hideous evil scowl, it wasn't visible to the Doctor because her face was buried in his chest. A few moments later he released Romana from the comforting hug just as her bright smile returned. The Doctor took her hand and led her out of the indoctrination room.

They walked swiftly towards the other door at the opposite end of the hall. It seemed to stretch further and further away with every step. After what felt like forever, they came to the door and opened it. They entered without any regard and as soon as the both of them were far enough from the door, it slammed shut all on it's own. Pitch black darkness consumed the Doctor and Romana, leaving them with only one identifiable thing in the entire room, each other. Luridious saw this as the perfect opportunity to snatch the Doctor's sonic without him noticing. Romana's free hand snaked it's way into his pocket and slowly proceeded to remove it. Just before Luridious managed to pull the sonic device from the loose pocket the Doctor secured it thinking it was going to fall out.

Luridious was unable to obtain the screwdriver from the Doctor's person with only the loss of his visual security. A distraction was also required. Romana did her best to restrain her body from doing it but, Luridious overpowered Romana, her foot stuck itself out and tripped the Doctor. Confirming it with the heavy thud of his long, lanky body dropping to the floor. "That was unexpected."

"You could say that." Romana retorted. She bent down and slipped the sonic screwdriver into the surprisingly deep pocket on her dress.One might say, they were bigger on the inside.

The Doctor helped himself to his feet, wiping away the imaginary dust he convinced himself was always present on floors.

Suddenly, the lights in the room flickered to life. It was a completely empty room. Only it was a holographic projection room, these types of rooms were typically used for simulations whether it was for leisure, training, or meditation. But the purpose of this one in particular was not as obvious to the Doctor as it should've been however, it was crystal clear to Romana. She and Luridious were sharing the same head space giving them access to each other's thoughts, experiences, memories and even their feelings. This was where Romana and the Doctor would face one and other. They would have to fight. Not side by side but, one on one. Go against each other. Both being forced to battle the one person they cared for the most, knowing that if they won they would lose the thing that meant so much to them.

The Doctor turned to Romana and took her hand again. He was slightly frightened, it was becoming more and more apparent what was going to happen. He didn't want to harm her. Deep inside Romana, she didn't want to harm him either but, Luridious had other plans in mind.

 **(Chapter Ten: A Hold On Romana)**

"Another holographic environment, interesting." The Doctor tried to pull Romana with him as he walked towards the middle of the giant space but she didn't budge.

He turned his face to hers. "Romana, is there something wrong?" Romana remained silent, her eyes were stiff, lifeless, and glazed over. She was idle. On the inside, she was struggling for power over her body, she put up quite a fight. Luridious didn't anticipate her being so strong. She delayed his plan for only mere moments. Luridious regained control and pushed the Doctor off Romana's body.

In her head, Romana screamed. "DON'T YOU DARE HURT HIM! HE'S GOING TO FIGURE IT OUT SOONER OR LATER LURIDIOUS! YOU WON'T GET AWAY WITH IT!" Luridious ignored Romana and proceeded with what he was doing.

"Romana? Romana, what is it? What's the matter? You aren't scared of me are you?" the Doctor asked. He began moving closer to Romana. Again, she remained silent. "Romana, it's alright. It's me. The Doctor, you know me. I'm not going to hurt you. I'd never do that." He reached for her hand. She quickly pulled it away."Romana, it's me. Come on. We've known each other for a while now. Please tell me you remember me...we've travelled to so many places together." he chuckled sadly. "I promise, I won't harm you. The monks. Whatever they did, I won't let them hurt you again. I won't let you out of my sight, I promise."

Luridious stopped and calculated his next move. If he did or said something unlike Romana's usual behavior, It could raise further suspicion. He used the one thing that the Doctor would never second guess, emotion. Luridious forced weak, exaggerated words from Romana's trembling lips. "They poked and prodded at me like I was a part of an experiment." The Doctor immediately drew the conclusion she was still experiencing post traumatic stress. He couldn't imagine what they could've possibly done to Romana to make her this fragile. He slowly and carefully wrapped his arms around her shoulders, pulled her closer to him and rubbed her back soothingly. The Doctor held Romana dear to his heart and what she told him tore at his soul. He didn't protect her. He wasn't at her side when it happened but, he still thought it was his fault. Romana's voice was meek and quiet. "They violated my mind. I wasn't strong enough. I'm sorry..." She trailed off sobbing, Luridious knew this guilt trip of his drew all of the Doctor's attention, eliminating any of his doubts or suspicion.

"Shhhhhh, everything is going to be alright. I've got you now. I won't let you go ever again."

The words angered Romana as they sank deeper and deeper into her brain. She screamed inside. "Damn you Luridious! Leave him be! Take me! But leave the Doctor alone!"

"Oh please! If you could've did something about it you would've already done it." Luridious scoffed confidently.

He was using the Doctor's guilt as a tool to blind him of what was really going on. She tried so desperately to break herself away from Luridious but it was useless. "I thought you weren't coming back for me...I was frightened and alone…" Luridious milked the situation for all it was worth and used every last drop of sorrow to distract the Doctor from the changes taking place in the room around them.

His head was nuzzled in Romana's neck. He found that her hair smelled of cherry blossoms. "How silly of you to think I'd allow such a thing." He gripped her tightly, not so much that it hurt her but to the extent that it was obvious he was overflowing with a bubbling guilt and anger, all of it ready to overflow and flood his brain.

Romana wasn't in control, she hoped with every bit of her being that the Doctor would realize it wasn't her, that there was something amiss, anything he could detect that would tell him Romana was not Romana. "Doctor, that's not me...I'm right here but, that's not me! Please, you have to see it!" she begged internally.

"Please promise not to let them take me, it hurt so much, not just physically but emotionally...I I I don't know how they did it...everything was sad and dark I could only feel heavy pain, sorrow, and f fear." Luridious stuttered through Romana's feigned tears.

"I promise to you Romana, they won't come near you ever again."

Luridious sniveled mockingly in Romana's head. "Isn't that sweet, he wants to protect you. But, the question is, who will protect him from me?"

"You leave him alone! Luridious if you think I'll just stand by and watch you hurt him, you are sorely mistaken."

"Whoever said you had a choice?"

"I did!" Romana used all her willpower and was able to put herself in driver's seat for a few moments. Romana's crying stopped instantly, her head snapped up towards the Doctor as she erupted with her urgent words. "Doctor, you have to listen to me! This man, Luridious, he possessed my body-"

Luridious bumped Romana to the back of her mind and took back control. "He saw my thoughts and weaknesses, he saw yours too. This place is going to be designed for our downfall. We have to get back to the TARDIS!" Clever with a silver tongue, Luridious was quick to think on his feet.

"He must be working for the Leader of Light," the Doctor mumbled.

"Nice try. Just for that I'll make sure his death is prolonged and extremely painful."

"I WON'T LET YOU DO THIS!" Romana shouted inside.

"Not much longer until lover boy here is executed by none other than the traitorous, Romanadvoratrelundar! A betrayal that not only means the end of him but, also confusion and heartache for the besotted Timelord. You seem to be in a tough spot right now, which do you choose? Lose your life or your darling Doctor? Would you like to phone a friend, ask the audience, or risk it all with a simple wager, little lady?" Luridious started to embody that of an over enthusiastic, type of a Devil's deed and deal, game show host. Romana could've swore she heard jeopardy music playing faintly in the background of her mind.

"Whatever you want you can have it! Just let the Doctor go! I'll do whatever you want!" Romana was willing to heed to Luridious and give him anything she had in her possession.

"We'll be alright, so long as we stick together." The Doctor hid his worry with a small grin.

"Apologies my dear, unfortunately that's not an option and it looks like your time is up!" Luridious denied her offer.

The Doctor looked around them to find the room transformed into a library of the most peculiar kind. From wall to wall, there were books, more than the Doctor cared to count, that sat on the tallest shelves he'd seen in the longest time. He noticed the shelves were set up similar to that of a labyrinth. The Doctor was confused on who Luridious was and how he fit into all of this but, he pushed any thought of the mysterious being aside and focused on escaping the organized jungle of universal literature that stood before them. Romana was still struggling for control as Luridious continued to work in her shadow.

 **(Chapter Eleven: Words of Warning)**

Staring at the spines of what seemed to be an endless book supply covering every subject the universe could provide. The Doctor was a bit of a bookworm, he was tempted to empty the shelves of the wonderful hard-covered seeds of shifting stories and inventive learning, sprawl his body out on the floor in the most childish manner he could manage, surrounding himself with books and start reading. Being that this 'library' was so enormous the Doctor couldn't help but bellow in excitement and curiosity. "There must be so much to explore!"

Romana, in her head, was thinking about if it really were to happen, if the Doctor would soon be dead, what would be left for her? "I don't know what I'd do, there'd be nothing left for me to look forward to. It would be unbearable. It's unthinkable. Unspeakable. How could I go on without him? He's shown me so many wondrous things and in that time, I've gotten so close to him...I've grown so fond of him. If he were to die, I would surely fall to pieces." Romana shook off the grim, lonesome idea. Not of her own will, Romana expelled an awkward, drawn out yawn. It was apparent that Luridious was growing weary and tired.

"Romana, Did you just yawn at my previous statement? Am I boring you?" The Doctor asked, as he turned his head to face her, slightly perplexed.

Luridious mumbled something incoherent between Romana's several layers of rapid, complex thoughts. It was too faint for her to comprehend. She could feel Luridious roll his eyes at the Doctor's clueless question.

"Let's see. So far, I've been drugged, left in a holding cell to freeze, escaped by chance, manhandled by a couple of monks then drugged again, tortured both internally and externally after, being violently thrown into a wall and nearly smashing my head, had my thoughts and memories violated by a psychotic, phantom telepath, then finally passed out from how intense the torture was. This whole ordeal you've landed us in has put me through more than enough! I'm not bored, I'm absolutely exhausted!"

With her arms crossed, Romana sat on the ground and pressed her body against the shelf standing behind them. Her words shocked the Doctor. He had no idea how much happened in the few hours they were apart from each other.

Romana's face was almost entirely void of emotion. Empty of anger, happiness, and even sorrow. She remained focused on the shelf across from where she sat. Still as a thousand year old statue, to the Doctor, she could've looked more beautiful only if she were to smile. Her special smile, the one that made his hearts flutter in his chest whenever she carelessly flashed it in his direction. It was always so bright, full of joy, and promise. But in her current expression, it wasn't as clear as it should've been, it was partially missing. Muddled, more than what seemed acceptable by normal standards.

Despite Romana's presence, he was puzzled by her strange behavior, his anxiety heightened due to his uncertainty. He couldn't tell what it was that caused her to act like this, his doubt was holding him back. The Doctor approached her in, what Romana thought was the most timid and bashful she'd ever seen him. His eyes were trained on the floor as he slowly shuffled towards her. He slumped beside her into what had to have been the most uncomfortable sitting position he could've chosen in that moment.

A small sigh escaped the Doctor as he glanced at Romana from the corner of his eye to see if she'd moved at all. She had yet to move. Her eyes were still frozen, locked on the bookshelf across the aisle. He huffed out of slight frustration, from his perspective, it appeared that he never managed to completely capture her attention. She gave off the impression that she became bored of his antics quite easily. Even though, that was not the case. The Doctor made an effort to be discreet as he gently leaned on her shoulder and whispered in question. "Lost in thought?" A moment of silence fell upon the library. She didn't speak, not a single word was uttered. Her head spun around, in one swift motion, bringing her face to face with the Doctor. The expression Romana conveyed was one of fright and helplessness."Romana, please, say something." The Doctor's eyes sparkled a brilliant blue as he waited in suspense for her to respond.

Luridious had supposedly fallen asleep. Romana evidently wore him down after countless tries to rid herself of his ascendancy over her. He used so much power to maintain control of Romana's body that he could only hold out for so long. His power faded for the time being. He slept, tangled in her hopes, comfortably nestled in the darkest corner of her mind that he could find. She was now able to show emotion instead of Luridious acting as her mask. "Doctor, please." She spoke faintly as tears began to stain her face once more.

Again, the Doctor wrote this off as an emotional breakdown, another effect of the trauma caused by the torture she endured. He forced a fatigued, doleful simper as he wiped away her fearful tears. Romana shoved his hand away, put her finger on his mouth in an attempt to shut him up, took hold of his jaw and drew his focus to her sad, sorrowful words.

"Doctor, he's still in my head. You're in danger, you have to get as far from me as you can." Her voice was weak but her message was well read. Romana searched his eyes for understanding.

On the Doctor's end, everything fell into place. It started to make sense. Romana's behavior wasn't caused by any trauma, it was the cause of someone else controlling her. It was the telepath, he was still present in her being. She'd broken free of him somehow and was in control for a small window of time in which she could tell the Doctor what he needed to know. The Doctor had to be careful. He didn't have any idea what this 'Luridious' character was capable of.

The Doctor was still and silent. He was in the process of sorting out the information that was bestowed upon him. Romana's finger was still pressed against his lips and her small, stern hand softly clenching his jaw. If he recalled correctly, and he did, this was the closest he'd come to this new regeneration of Romana's, in an intimate sense. He wanted so badly to let his raw feelings spill out right then and there in that moment. To impart how he felt in all the time they spent together. No lies, no cover ups, no over complicated explanations, nevermore. Simply the truth, the whole truth, and nothing less. But it struck him that this was not the time nor was it the place for his outpour of affection. He removed her delicate hand from his face carefully cradling it in his own. "Is he listening in on our conversation?"

She shook her head and sputtered. "No, he's incapacitated."

"Alright, listen to me. Whatever you do, don't anger him. If you can manage to overcome his control again you need to signal to me that you've done so but do it without telling me directly. He might hurt you if he knows what your intentions are. Say something that only you and I would know about. Keep your thoughts and whatever memories he hasn't invaded under lock and key. Do you understand?" Romana nodded her head as a few more tears trailed her porcelain skin before dripping onto the dress sitting bunched up in her lap. "Did he harm you to the extent of severity?"

She couldn't stand to look him in the eyes any longer, she shifted her focus to the unruly curtain of curls that hung loosely over his forehead. She whispered words, that felt as if sand paper was scratching her throat, in response to the Doctor's question. "There is a faint, lingering, stinging pain in my hands and arms but, no permanent damage from what I can see " Romana paused briefly as her face returned to it's former state of fright and worry, she continued her frantic rant. "You have to get away from me! I'm going to He's going t to force me to hurt you! Don't you understand?! I can't control him! Don't be as daft as you always are! You have to get out of here!"

The Doctor didn't catch everything Romana said but it was clear what she was trying to get across to him. He took a deep breath, closing his eyes, exhaling whilst restraining the movement of his shoulders and torso. "Romana, I'm not leaving you. I'll be fine. I can handle him. I won't let him put any harm to you and I certainly won't allow him to hurt me. Please, you must trust me on this. Could you do that? For me?"

Suddenly, Romana felt her consciousness being shoved aside. She knew in an instant what it was and blocked off her memory. All she could do now was keep him from invading her mental defenses. He had awoken from a brief but, restful slumber. For the third time now, Luridious claimed control of the young timelady's body and quickly forced a nod from Romana in answer to the Doctor's inquiry. "It seems you've managed to turn your tall, dark, facetious boy toy into a staunch and determined defender. How quaint. What's next? Are you two going to start wearing matching outfits? Or maybe get each other promise rings?" If only Romana could've seen the smug smile fixed in place on his face, she probably would've set aside all diplomacy and relieved Luridious of his smirk attitude with a quick harsh slap to the face, leaving him a burning red handprint on his cheek.

"It's pointless you know. You're fighting a battle you've already lost, Luridious." Romana chided confidently.

"You may have won the battle but I can assure you, my dear Romana, I've already won the war."

 **(Chapter Twelve: Give Me Freedom or Give Me Death)**

Blinded by his own benevolence, the Doctor didn't see the switching of places hidden behind Romana's eyes. Father Luridious was more than ready to use this to his advantage. He straightened Romana's posture and sustained the woeful frown she expressed not moments before he took over again. "Doctor, I I can feel him starting to awaken. I must warn you, he shall try to convince you that he is m me. Don't believe a word he says. No matter what explanation he offers you, d don't trust it. You have to extract him, liberate me...and to do that you have to injure my physical form. Once you do that he will be expelled from my mind and body. Then I'll regenerate and all will be well " Suddenly, Romana's arms and hands began thrashing violently. Luridious seemed to be putting on a little show for the Doctor, convincing him Romana was slowly losing grip but was still slightly in control. Sly and slick, Luridious had played him for a fool.

Romana's squirmish display left the Doctor stricken with panic. He was oblivious to what was happening to her and had no way of putting a stop to it. He was scared out of his wits and was helpless to do anything about it but, in spite of that, he managed to stutter. "Romana, I I I can't hurt you "

"I promise, it won't hurt me." Luridious decided it was time for him to make an exit. Romana's shaking suddenly stopped. The Doctor dropped his head thinking Luridious had taken control of her. Both hands covering his face as a few silent tears welled in his eyes.

Luridious took the opportunity to flee from Romana's body without the Doctor noticing. But before Luridious left, he snarled something at Romana. "Be wary of who you trust."

Romana sat pushed against the shelf because of the force being exerted from her. Her lips parted only slightly as a thick, black, odorless smoke escaped her mouth of its own will. The smoke clotted all together into a massive cloud in front of Romana's face before dispersing into the air and disappearing entirely, leaving not a single trace of the Luridious' presence. She was graced with a complete release of all pent-up tension in her body that was inflicted upon her by Luridious. A wave of relief washed over her mind, he was finally gone. At last, Romana had her freedom once again. She allowed her thoughts to buzz in her brain without fear of him invading her privacy and using them to gain the upper hand. Romana balanced the weight of her torso on the palms of her hands, pressed on the floor, on either side of her. Romana's breath was shallow and uneven but soon enough she regained a steady rhythm and spoke. "Doctor, he's gone."

The Doctor wiped his face clean of any tears that fell, raised his head, pulling away from his hands and turned towards her with a strong, saddening doubt in his eyes. He sniffled in a way that might make one think he was angry. "I can see right through your little act." Ironically, that was what he failed to see. "If you have any idea who I am and what I'm capable of, you'll leave her right now."

Romana was still processing everything going on. Her mind was blurry and jumbled up. She couldn't focus, leaving her confused and concerned. But she grinned as she spoke. "Doctor, no, it's me. He left me, he's gone. It's Romana. I promise, it's just me." The innocence in her tone and smile only made the Doctor more certain that it was not her.

"Oh, knock it off! I know it's you, Luridious! If you have beef with me then let's settle this like men. Leave Romana out of it!" the Doctor spat. He stood up straight, towering above her.

"Doctor it IS me. Why would I lie to you? Luridious told you those things to trick you. Surely you saw through that?"

"The only thing I see through is you! Get out of her! She did nothing to you! Leave her body right this instant!" The Doctor scolded her beginning to lose his patience.

The cogs in Romana's head began turning, clinking and clicking as she started to realize how serious and infuriated he was. "Doctor, please tell me you're joking."

"I don't joke around when it comes to people I care about. If you won't leave her body willingly, I'll force you out of her..."

The feigned words Luridious used, to plant the seed of doubt in the Doctor's head, echoed in her ears. "You have to extract him, liberate me...and to do that you have to injure my physical form." Romana slowly crawled to her feet. She needed to be careful, if she made the wrong move the Doctor might snap and lash out at her thinking that he might rid her of Luridious. "Doctor..." Romana backed away on her heels.

He took three huge steps towards her and grabbed her bare forearms firmly before she could evade him. "Get out of her head! You have no right to be in there!"

The Doctor was beginning to frighten Romana. "Doctor please! Allow me to prove myself!"

"There's nothing you could say that would convince me "

"Doctor! If I'm not Romana how could I know that you served me blueberry pancakes this morning after waking me up or that you left a trail of dying flower petals in the corridors "

"Oh that's just because you had access to Romana's memories "

"I know that you still have to repair K9's circuitry. Or perhaps you'd like to explain that little note on your nightstand with my name on it?" Romana's lips curled into a small, satisfied smile, as she watched his facial expression contort, knowing that the note held some particular significance to him. Even though she had no clue what was written on it because she dared not invade the Doctor's privacy like Luridious did to her.

Luridious would've dismissed such a small, yet important, detail and would've never gave it another thought. The Doctor knew this to be the truth. The Doctor was still unsure of her but his cheeks were colored with embarrassment. He let go of her arms, still staring into her precious pale blue eyes. He didn't know how to respond which was rare in his case seeing he almost always had something to say. "I uh, I can explain that..." A few seconds of awkward silence passed, the Doctor was lost in thought. Trying desperately to think of something that might suggest anything other than a crush. But nothing came to mind.

Romana broke the silence with a confident teasing in her tone. "Go ahead, I'm waiting."

Finally, he mustered up a reasonable explanation. "Our itinerary for the day..." the Doctor looked away briefly then back at Romana, holding in a little laugh. "Didn't go exactly as I planned."

"Very little has gone right today." Romana giggled relieved that he believed her. "We should start looking around for a way out of here."

The Doctor cleared his throat, deepened his voice as his tone turned serious. "Yes, indeed." He motioned for her to walk in front of him. Romana took the lead as the Doctor followed close behind.

Meanwhile, the black smoke that mysteriously vanished, made it's way into the Leader's private chambers, not far from the holographic projection room where Romana and the Doctor were stuck cautiously exploring it's deceiving environment. The smoke weaved through the air until it reached the chair that sat in front of the Leader's desk. The cloud transformed into its humanoid form, Luridious. "I hope I am not disturbing you "

A voice deeper and darker than the blackest depths of space itself broke out and interrupted Luridious. "What took you so long?" The Leader was cloaked in all silvery robes and the veil that he wore constantly, hiding his face from the rest of the world.

Luridious knelt down on one knee. "I regretfully must inform you that I have failed, I beg your forgiveness, Leader."

The Leader clenched his gloved fist and banged it on the desk resulting with a loud, hollow thud. He dropped his head in anger and restraint. "Fool...you can't carry out the simplest of tasks. I asked you to do one thing...ONE THING! Make them turn on one another and you can't even do THAT!"

"Leader, please! Twas not my fault! We underestimated their strength. The one called Romana overcame my power more than once and the Doctor, he was most determined and fierce when Romana was put in peril. Their bond is nearly unbreakable! Please! Do not blame me!"

The Leader sat back against the wooden throne that he sat upon. He was silently debating on what his next move should be. "Perhaps if what you speak of is true..." He stopped and looked up at Luridious. "You are forgiven Luridious. This is the last time you fail me."

Relief surfaced in Luridious' expression. He scrambled to his feet. "Oh Thank you, almighty one! Your mercy is endless. Rest assured, it won't happen again."

"Oh, I know it won't happen again. I'll make sure of that." The Leader grimaced beneath his veil as he took off his right hand glove and snapped his fingers. Suddenly, Luridious screamed, louder than Romana did when he tortured her, he was being burned to a crisp from within. He pleaded. "NO! I CAN DO BETTER! PLEASEEEEE!"

Soon enough his screaming ceased as he turned to a pile of ash before his Leader. Luridious was dead, killed by a much more powerful being than himself, a being known to his enemies and victims as the Bringer of Death. But to his followers, he was their saviour. To them he was, the Leader of Light.

 **(Chapter Thirteen: The Child and the Ring)**

"PESURA!" The Leader shouted in anger, hiding his ungloved hand underneath his desk.

"Yes! Coming Leader!" A young woman who looked to be in her mid-to-late twenties came rushing into the Leader's chambers, there was a monk's tunic draped over her arm. She'd just changed into a modest silk shift, tinted with the brightest pink imaginable. Pesura had soft features that didn't draw too much attention but, if someone were to glance at her long enough they'd see her for what she was, the picture of innocence and beauty. Unbeknownst to her, and every other being on Denglore, she was the daughter of the thought to be 'god', the Leader of Light.

Pesura was born to a dying woman, the Leader's secret mistress. Shortly after Pesura's birth, her mother, the Leader's lady love, told him to watch over their little girl and then died in his arms. As a god, the Leader should have been able to stop her from dying. And if he could have, he would have done so because he was hopelessly and indubitably in love with her. But what exactly was stopping him from saving her? A secret perhaps?

The Leader didn't save Pesura's mother and being that not a soul knew of this now dead woman or their child, there was no one to question why he didn't save her.

Pesura was raised by the Leader himself but never did he let on that she was his real daughter. He told his followers and the Brotherhood she was orphaned by off-planet visitors and deemed she was to be respected by all, regardless of the circumstances. Pesura was brought up through the privacy of the Brotherhood. Over time she grew accustomed to their beliefs and teachings, she firmly believed that the Leader of Light was the one that control Denglore's conflict and maintained its peace with his powers. Pesura wasn't treated like a princess however, the monks knew that the Leader held her dear to his heart and, though they knew not the reason why, did what they could to make everything that much easier for her.

Why was it a secret? Well, to answer a question with another question, what kind of god has ever been known to have a humanoid lover? Let alone, a biological descendent, from said lover, for that matter? If people had knowledge of this, they'd start to suspect they're almighty Leader. He couldn't have that happen, now could he? The Leader couldn't risk people questioning his ungodly behavior...it might stir up assumptions...and may just make people question their faith in him. He calmed his tone before speaking again, he didn't want to direct his rage at her. "Pesura, would you take care of that little mess please?"

"Yes, where is the mess, Leader?" Pesura said, unknowingly, having trudged through the pile of mysterious, black ashes that sat just a few inches from the chair placed in front of the Leader's desk.

"Pesura, you're stepping in it...well him." He shook his head holding back faint laughter.

She looked down to see the mess of ashes at her feet. She was now standing in the former head priest of the Brotherhood of Light. Pesura stepped back, gently shook the blackened cinders from her shoes, placed her tunic on the chair and posed a question. "Might I ask, who it was this time?"

"Father Luridious, he failed to fulfill his promise to the Brotherhood."

His death meant almost nothing to Pesura. She'd only spoken with Luridious a few times. It was always talk of carrying out orders and nothing more. Pesura briefly exited the room then returned with a small broom and dustpan in hand. She proceeded to sweep Luridious' remains into the pan and disposed of them in the fireplace.

"I expect you took care of our guests and made sure they were brought to their holding cells?" The Leader probed already knowing what she'd done.

Pesura turned to face him. "Yes, Leader. I made sure they were safely escorted to their cells."

He nodded his head under his veil. "You may go now, child."

She bowed her head as she pivoted away from him and went to pick up her tunic.

"Pesura." The fair, soft featured, brown eyed young lady stopped just before she had the chance to grab her oversized tunic. "Leave your tunic...you look nicer in that dress." Pesura smiled, looked over her shoulder, nodded at the Leader and left, quietly shutting the door behind her.

The Leader sat behind his desk for a few moments, hidden under his veil was a grin. Pesura reminded him of her mother. She was so grown now, so mature and developed. It seemed as if it were only yesterday that she was born...as her mother died. His happiness soon faded as did his grin. "She's gone you imbecile! You've turned soft!" Frustration and hate sizzled in the Leader's heart. "I shall go onto rule new worlds. Building my grand empire. With Timelords at my side, nothing will stand in my way!" Any tender thoughts that might've been brought to light were destroyed by his unquenchable thirst for power.

The Leader pulled out a dinky metal box from under his desk, yanked a tarnished key from his pocket and forcefully shoved it into the lock. He jiggled the key until he heard the lock click and unclipped it from the latch. As he opened the dented box, the contents inside were revealed. It was the secret source of the Leader's ultimate rule, a ring embedded with the mineral dust from the long lost enchanted phyllite stone of untold prophecy. Forged by what he dubbed the eternal flames of Curxia. It held the capacity to control the mind of every native on Denglore. He carefully slipped the ring onto his ungloved index finger. He flashed a malicious smile as an electric feeling of evil surged through him. "They shall cower before me, I'll make them watch as others fall helpless to my reign! Soon those two Timelords will be at my beck and call!" the Leader cackled as he stood in confidence. "I SHALL RULE! I AM TO BE THE KING OF IT ALL!" He stared down at his hand with a malevolent admiration in his eyes. With every moment that passed, his mind grew crazier. Ever since he discovered it's abilities, he developed an unhealthy obsession and attachment to it. This ring was how he rose to power and became the Leader of Light.

 **(Chapter Fourteen: Back to Square One)**

The Leader moved briskly into his private storeroom. As he strutted in and flicked on the light switch, the familiar smell of cedar filled him with satisfaction. The sight of the Doctor's clothes, laying on the back of his lounge chair, only added to his splendor.

He slunk towards the Doctor's coat and began to survey the contents of its pockets. The Leader delve into the left pocket to find a handful of little, squishy, oddly colored, bite sized bits of unprecedented delight. They smelled strangely sweet and looked deceivingly delectable. In an abrupt conniption of internal inquisitiveness, he jammed a cherry red jellybaby, under his veil and into his mouth.

The Leader squeezed his eyes shut just as his nose scrunched up and his eyebrows furrowed in disgust. It's wacky sweetness was all too intense for his tastebuds to handle. The saliva covered confection shot out from under his concealing headdress and into his ungloved hand, as if the candy just escaped it's captor and had an urgent message for it's sugary brothers and sisters. "What an awful thing for someone to keep in their pocket!" Obviously, the Doctor and Leader had very different tastes.

He shoved the candies into their wrapper and shucked the collective lump onto the footrest beside the chair. The Leader wiped the sticky spittle on the Doctor's jacket and fished his hand into the right pocket but, he found nothing. He glanced at the pair of slacks folded up on the chair and saw a slight bulge in the back pocket. A smug smile coiled onto his lips as he snatched up the pants.

"What have we here?" He plunged his fingers into the pocket and pulled out a pleated piece of paper. The Leader eagerly unfolded the carefully creased note. To his surprise, the note held a most interesting message. It also told the Leader of the Doctor's feelings for a certain someone. "So that's your weakness, how deliciously vulnerable!"

Meanwhile, in the holographic projection room not too far away, the Doctor and Romana were cautiously twisting their way through the maze of shelves until finally they found a door. The Doctor shouted in all his giddiness, "Ahah! I knew we were going the right way!"

"You know, you said the same thing with last three doors," Romana spat out of utter exasperation, "they up and disappeared as soon as you touched the handle!"

"This one is different." The Doctor twisted his body to face Romana. "I can feel it this time." He turned away from her as he cautiously side stepped to the door and dipped his hand into the gray slit in his borrowed slacks to find he no longer possessed it. "ROMANA."

"Yes, Doctor?"

"I'VE LOST THE SONIC!"

"No, you haven't." Romana swiftly walked over to the Doctor and whipped out the sonic screwdriver gently placing in his hand before distancing herself from the Doctor to allow him to work.

"How did you get it?"

"Luridious pickpocketed you."

The Doctor shook his head and chuckled, "Ever heard of put pocketing?"

"No, I haven't. But I assume it's the opposite of pickpocketing."

"It's a wonderful way to pass the time when waiting for your train at Grand Central station. People's reactions are priceless." he sighed happily thinking back on the times he Sarah Jane shared before returning to the task at hand.

"I must know," she hesitated for a moment or two, "what in the name of sanity are you wearing?"

The Doctor stopped and spun around, his face a mask of bitterness. "If I wasn't wearing this you'd most likely be a vegetable by now!"

"Oh really? How so?" Romana framed her torso properly as she spoke softly, subtly mocking his own habitual pattern of posture with her hands on her hips.

The Doctor's mouth hung open as he waited for something clever and witty to spew forth in the form of his own voice but, nothing came to mind, he was at a loss for words again. It seemed to be happening more and more often. It was always when he was in the presence of the strikingly intelligent and beauteous, Romanadvoratrelundar. Little Miss 'I graduated with a Triple First'. His polar opposite. Where he fell short, she was sure to excel. She was an anchor for him. Never letting him get ahead of himself. She always made certain when the Doctor did go too far that he got an earful for it. Not to mention, whenever Romana needed to, she put him in his place.

"Nothing to say?" she teased.

The Doctor huffed at her and returned his full attention to the door, "Let's just get out of here."

"Hurry up." Romana sighed and pivoted away from him with a faint feeling of satisfaction. The Doctor smirked to himself and began sonicing the multi-levered interlock on the door.

A few minutes later, the Doctor managed to render the several locks, entwined in the door, useless. Suddenly, an idea interrupted his train of thought and one of the many voices in his head started to speak, "Let's show Romana just how lucky she is to have such a big and strong timelord on hand." The Doctor's grin stretched across his face revealing his massive teeth. "Romana, stand back. We don't know what's behind this door. Allow me to brave the unknown!"

Romana turned around to see the Doctor taking a few steps in her direction then he swiftly spun away and bolted towards the door at top speed. He slammed his body into the unlocked barrier with all the force he could manage. A loud THUNK sounded as the two masses met. The Doctor grunted and whimpered in a high pitched voice as he slumped to the floor next to the door that remained unopened. "Not...my best idea."

Romana moseyed over to the door, twisted the handle, pulled against the door's weight as it creaked open and remarked in a very much satisfied tone, "It's pull, not push. I guess they didn't teach you that at the academy. Next time, look at the hinges before trying to knock the door down like a barbarian, eh?"

The Doctor watched Romana leave as another voice in his head rang out. "So much for big and strong. Should've stuck with your charm!" He scrambled to his feet as painlessly as he could and motioned for her to take the lead. The Doctor stepped out and closed the door as quietly as possible then, the door clicked a few times on the other side. "An automatic locking mechanism, very advanced for this planet."

"So are holographic images, I think it's safe to say that the technology the monks have, is far more advanced than the rest of the planet's." Romana gurgled proudly.

"Ah yes but, the question is how did they acquire it?"

Romana quickly noticed something. "Doctor."

He continued his pointless lecture. "Who supplied them with it? Better yet, Why did they supply the monks with this technology?"

Romana spoke louder. "Doctor."

Again, the Doctor was still concentrated on ranting endlessly. "What did they receive in return? Money? Glory?"

"DOCTOR!"

"WHAT?! WHAT?! WHAT?!"

"Isn't this the same hall we were in earlier?" She glared at him with an expression of irritation.

He stopped and looked at his surroundings. A completely white hall. "Damn…"

"What do we do now? Stand around and wait to get caught?"

The Doctor stood silently in thought for a few seconds and walked until he was dead center of the hall. "When all else fails, go back to square one."

"We are at square one right now and we're stuck!"

"No, this isn't square one." He smiled and pointed towards the ceiling. "That is square one."

With her eyebrows furrowed in a puzzled contorted expression she waddled over to the Doctor and looked at the ceiling square. It was different than the others. It was wood painted white, whereas the others were cement. "A trapdoor?"

He nodded his head, bent down, and folded his fingers like a trampoline to lift her up to the trapdoor. Hopefully, the rug wasn't laid over it again. For Romana, the ceiling was relatively tall however, to the Doctor it was rather low hanging. She put her foot in the his hands as he quickly gave her a boost. She pressed the trapdoor upwards until it opened all the way, the Doctor held his footing while she pulled herself up. Romana dusted off her dress and glanced around the room. She froze as her focus landed on a mysterious figure with a veil covering it's face, and shiny silver garments concealing everything from the neck down, with the exception of a pair of hands. One of it's hands was bare, revealing skin whiter than the brightest of snow. It seemed to hold something familiar. The other hand wore a pitch black leather glove and grasped nothing but air.

The Doctor stood alone below the trapdoor. He stared at the ground for a moment, he didn't like how his boots and the rest of this borrowed outfit clashed. It didn't feel right. "I'll be glad to get these off!" He shook his curly mane and returned his attention to the matter at hand. The Doctor jumped up, grabbed the side of the squared entry and used his somewhat muscular upper body to hoist himself into the room. After finally managing to successfully lift themselves out of the hall beneath the room, the Doctor and Romana were still and silent having found a seemingly faceless presence only a mere few feet from where they stood.

 **(Chapter Fifteen: Run In With a Leading Menace)**

"Oh gracious me..." the Leader teased as his smirk grew wider under his silvery veil, "How lucky I must be for you to return so soon! I was beginning to think something might have happened to you, Doctor. And even better, you've brought company, how thoughtful!"

"Doctor," Romana whispered with careful curiosity, "Who is "

"Oh how rude of me!" the Leader discourteously interrupted with a subtle unctuous undertone, oblivious to the irony of his interjection, "I trust I need not conceal my face while in the presence of guests." The Leader's chalky hand rose to the veil masking what lye beneath it. Hiding what was reborn to fit the potential of the ring discovered by a nameless and lonesome outcast so many years before. He tore away his extravagant headdress. Revealing his face, his true identity made known to the Doctor, and a vaguely confused Romana, whom he planned to appoint as his advisor.

The Leader's flesh was pale and aged, with icy gray eyes starved of a love once known long ago, now filled with an insatiable appetite for power. Nearly every inch of the lower half of his face was covered by a well kept, lustrous, milk white beard drawn to fit the shape of the sharp chin and jawline he possessed.

For a few moments, silence fell upon the room until the Leader's lips parted and broke the stillness of the room's atmosphere, "Hello again!"

The Doctor's brow furrowed in thought as he scanned the Leader's face. He was unsure whether or not he was mistaken. He hesitantly stuttered, "This This can't be right." Stumbling around in his head, carefully combing through the details of his past, to find that he had met this man once before.

As the Doctor's gaze dropped to the floor, the Leader's mouth curled into a menacing grin that sent shivers down Romana's spine. "Is there something the matter, Doctor?" he chortled. The Doctor raised his eyes to meet the Leader's once again but said nothing. Allowing his shock to surface in his expression. His face speaking volumes of uneasiness that vocally remained untold, his mouth hung open and held mute. Making the Doctor wish for the once lively melody and rhythm of seemingly endless tick tocks the formerly functioning clock, sitting on the bookshelf, counted to pass the time. As the silence settled, it burdened the group's ears with a vexing emptiness that curled and tightened around their thoughts. The noiselessness was thick, heavy, and hot, unbearably so. Uncomfortable enough to make even the Leader squirm. "It seems as if you've seen a ghost..." He trailed off.

"Perhaps I have," the Doctor muttered. He was still dumbfounded by the dusty body that stood before him, in spite of this, the Doctor gathered his voice and spoke, "Verroche..."

"Ah, so you do remember me!" the Leader exclaimed with devious benevolence.

The Doctor piped up, "How could I not?"

"Do you like my new look?"

"I can't say I do, you've certainly changed "

"Whereas you, Doctor, haven't changed in the slightest." The Leader's eyes shifted from the Doctor to Romana as he allowed the sight of her to sink into his brain.

His stare made Romana uneasy. She crossed her arms over her chest in an effort to ward off his probing leer. "May I inquire as to who you are?"

"Can't you tell?" He smirked. "I'm the one in charge,"

"The Leader of Light," the Doctor retorted sharply, "formerly known as Verroche Queve."

The Leader chuckled, "You were gone only a short time," lifting his hands, he gestured to the silvery cassock he presently wore. "Isn't it amazing what one can accomplish when they put their mind to work?"

"Yes, it is." The corners of his lips suddenly curled towards the ceiling. "I, of all people, know that to be true." He turned to his companion with an erratic smile. "Isn't that right? Don't you think so, Romana?"

She gently nodded her head in agreement. "Yes, the mind can be a powerful tool when used correctly,"

"Indeed, it is." The Doctor pivoted away from her and towards Verroche. "The question is whether or not to use said power for good or for evil "

"Evil? Nonsense my friend! There's no evil here! Only peace!" he barked proudly. "You assume too much, dear Doctor. There's no need to worry!"

For the Doctor, all pleasantries had ceased. His voice suddenly began to sound like that of a serious man. "On the contrary, Mr. Queve" he said sternly as he folded his hands together behind his back, "I fear there are many things I need worry about." The Doctor slowly strided closer to the Leader.

"And what might these things be? Hmm?"

Romana cleared her throat and spoke. "What of the invasive beings you have on staff here? They're certainly not friendly."

"Yes, what of your sadistically ravenous welcome wagon torture?" The Doctor glanced over his shoulder at Romana. "What did you say his name was?"

"Luridious," she broke off briefly. Taking a deep breath to keep from losing her position of intimidation. "Father Luridious."

Verroche chuckled at the mention of that fool's name. "I admit his methods were extreme and inordinate but he did produce satisfying results for the most part."

"Ah, but his efforts rendered superfluous. As both Romana and I are still very much alive."

"Oh Doctor," he sighed, "My intentions were never to kill you. I was merely testing the strength of your loyalty! Why you're here with me now, are you not?"

"And? What if I had killed Romana?" The Doctor swallowed hard. Even the thought of such a despicable act was enough to make his stomach churn.

"Well, granted that would've been most unfortunate, you'd still have rung victorious! As I see the will to kill to be a valuable asset to my plan."

"Ah, so you have a plan! Could've fooled me. I think I've figured out your little operation, then again, maybe not. But do tell, what are you planning?"

A smug smirk slowly began blending in with his mindful words as he spoke. "I have an offer for you, Doctor."

"Go on," said the Doctor, "I'm listening."

"You see, I require your assistance."

"And?"

"I need a machine."

"A machine? What sort of machine?"

"Yes, a machine. A very valuable machine."

"And pray tell, what does said machine do?"

"It moves through space "

"Ah, so you're looking for a ship. A spacecraft. Those are easy to come by "

"And time, Doctor. Through space and time."

The Doctor chuckled. "And where do you expect to find and acquire such a vessel?"

"From you." Verroche smiled.

"Sorry but I'm afraid I don't have a clue as to where one might purchase a time traveling spacecraft."

"Oh but you do. I know you do."

"How did you come to that conclusion?"

Verroche took four steps toward the Doctor and his companion leaving only a small space in which they would speak face to face. "It's not the matter of how I came to it. It's the matter of how I shall act on said conclusion."

"What exactly do you plan to do?" Inquired Romana as she side stepped closer to the Doctor for protection.

The Leader's eyes shifted rapidly between the Doctor and Romana. "I'm so glad you asked...Romana. I could about this in many ways but as I see there are only two ways that would end pleasantly."

"Do tell, I'm on the edge of my seat!" The Doctor slurred.

"I wouldn't take that tone when speaking to a god if I were you, Doctor!" Verroche shouted as his patience grew thinner by the second.

The Doctor saw a glimpse of doubt in the Leader's eyes and pounced on the opportunity. "Ah, yes! But seeing as you aren't me I'll do as I please!"

"Doctor! I know exactly what I want and I know precisely how to get it! If you don't cooperate I'll go so far as to take it by force!"

"Ha! As if you could! You're nothing more than a glorified emperor!"

It vanished. His patience was no more. "HOW DARE YOU! I AM THE SUPERIOR BEING! YOU SHALL GIVE ME YOUR VESSEL AT ONCE!"

"WE WILL NOT!"

Suddenly, a terribly familiar feeling crept inside Romana's body. It burned and boiled. Pain began to ache and fester in her hearts. The torment she felt before was returning. "Doctor, Doctor…"

"WHAT?! WHAT IS IT?!" he shouted.

"DOCTOR YOU WILL COOPERATE OR YOUR ASSISTANT WILL KNOW THE AGONY THE DEEPEST DEPTHS OF HELL BRINGS!" Romana shrieked in pain and collapsed not able to handle the fiery anguish in her veins.

 **(Chapter Sixteen) *coming soon***


End file.
